What Kind of Death Gets the Most Applause at a Republican Debate: Execution or Coma?

At last night’s Republican presidential debate, odious moderator Wolf Blitzer posed a hypothetical bioethical question to Representative Ron Paul of Texas: “A healthy 30-year-old young man has a good job, makes a good living, but decides, ‘You know what, I’m not going to spend $200 or $300 a month for health insurance, because I’m healthy, I don’t need it.’ But something terrible happens, and all of a sudden he needs it. Who’s going to pay if he goes into a coma, for example? Who pays for that?” Paul hems and haws, but Blitzer presses on. “Congressman, are you saying that society should just let him die?” Paul is not saying that, at least not exactly. A gentleman in the audience certainly is, though, and yelled out, “Yeah!” upon the prospect of the theoretical 30-year-old’s death. Applause abounds.

A careful analysis of the tape reveals that the Tampa, Florida, crowd cheered for a full three seconds after Blitzer finishes the phrase “… let him die?”

This response lasts for just one second less than the applause precipitated by Brian Williams’s mention of Texas governor Rick Perry’s record-breaking execution accomplishments—234 inmates more than any modern governor, and counting!—at last week’s debate.

To any Republican presidential candidate unsure how to answer these questions: just pause for applause.